BROUGHT TO YOU BY THE MR2 MK1 CLUB
From Mike 1st March 2008:
Wanted. SUGGEST A CAPTION
WHO KILLED ROGER RABBIT?
Picture this. Coming back into Maketu a few days ago. Edge of road was tall
grass (we really are in the sticks).Rabbit suddenly leapt high in front of me!
Absolutely no chance to react and avoid. It was right there… instantly! Whack!
My first thought “poor little bugger, he’ll have a headache”. Then I wondered
why I could’nt see all the messy bits in my rear view mirror? I continued
without any further thought. Pulled into my driveway. As I got out to open my
garage door I noticed two furry legs dangling over the front of my air scoop.
The front end of said (dead) animal was well embedded through the broken grille
and one eye was laying beside it YIJK! Damage looked fairly minimal and I
started to see the funny side of this as the completely dead bunny was lying
right underneath my number plate which reads “LIV NOW” Of course I had to take a
few pictures for the record. I removed the little furry monster and noticed that
the aircon radiator was very concave! Rang the insurance company who suggested
getting a quote or two. Went to the local Toyota dealer who priced the bits.
Radiator $1016, whole front section $600… then there is labour and painting.
Looks like this bunny will cost my insurance company over $2000!
Legend Photography
Andy and Angie Beicher - NEW ZEALAND
JAPANESE CAR MAT FOUND IN MARK NIAS'S SUPERCHARGER
A SERIES OF CARTOONS FROM A JAPANESE MR2 HANDBOOK WITH SPOOF
TRANSLATIONS
NO. 1 ONLY FIT APPROVED TOYOTA ACCESSORIES
NO. 2 "IN CASE OF BREAKDOWN PLACE NISSAN FLAG ON THE ROOF OF
YOUR MR2"
DEAR SIR,
Thank you for sending me my membership number and news letters. I would have
no objection to you reproducing parts of my last letter, you may want to combine
it with this further tale of the unexpected.
After reading your article on the on the cooling system, let me tell you this
– after buying the car I felt it only fair to take it to my local dealers for an
oil and filter change, plus a coolant change, not knowing when it was last done.
After leaving my loved one (The MR2- not the wife) in the safe hands of the
dealer, I carried on my normal day thinking that I had done the right thing. I
later collected it paid the £84.09 and left. I came straight home and locked it
in the garage. The next morning on opening the garage door I was met by a tidal
wave of coolant. “Very impressed”. On closer inspection there was a hole in the
radiator - strange it not being there 24 hours earlier. Then came the phone call
to the dealer who said they were very sorry - if I brought the car in they would
fit a new radiator and coolant, but there would be a small charge of £350 for
the radiator, and £20 for the coolant – with a small discount for my
inconvenience!!
I removed the radiator myself, took it to the local repair specialist, who
fitted a new core for £80.00. I then refitted it, went back to my Toyota dealer,
and persuaded him to replace the coolant free of charge, which he did. (Very
impressed again) After two days of using the vehicle, I discovered that the
radiator was not getting warm, and decided that I must have an airlock, so black
to the dealer again. Out came the workshop manual, and I had to show the
mechanic where all the bleed valves were!! This time, HE was impressed! (and I
was irate) Don’t let this experience put you off having your coolant changed at
the dealers, as I’m sure that when most of you try to follow the instructions in
the last newsletter, you will realise that it in not an easy task at all.
Still to come are “The new GENUINE TOYOTA battery” and the even better “How
not to repair an electric aerial on the cheap”
Yours sincerely,
MARK DAWSON
DEAR DAVID,
I received your letter dated 11.10.95, which I read with interest and believe
me, if you want a surprise, you should try my local dealer! They are trapped in
a time warp.The only thing that they can get anywhere near right is serving you
petrol, and it is always handy to have a piece of rag to wipe the side of the
car!!
The man in the parts department is a complete xxxxxx, I use the words “man in
the parts department” as he is not fit to be classified as a storeman. (more of
that in my next letter to the MK1 Register) And as for the service manager I am
not even going to waste ink. I would like to point out that I did not disagree
with your comments at all on the cooling system. And yes I am competent of
removing the radiator, I am also more than capable of changing the coolant - but
that is NOT the point I was trying to make. My letter was based on THE FACTS,
like yours, but if my dealer was even half what he is supposed to be there would
be no letter to write - and the newsletter needs people to put pen to to paper.
I was only trying to point out that even dealers get this simple job wrong, and
as you say in your letter certain things are beyond certain peoples level of
ability (I can think of one TOYOTA trained mechanic)
My capability on vehicle maintenance is high as I am a part-time 24hr
roadside assistance and recovery mechanic, but when it comes playing with
spanners on my MR2, it’s down to those trusted guys at TOYOTA. I am convinced
that one day soon with my help and constant nagging they will get one of my jobs
right.
I want a full service and a new pin in the door hinge but I know they will
bring it back three weeks later and say ”sorry we have been so long but we only
had two spark plugs in stock and we couId not find anything wrong with bonnet
hinges”.
I’ll send a copy of your letter and this one to the register.
MARK DAWSON 15.10.95
TOYOTA BATTERY
As promised in a recent letter to you, I have the pleasure of writing to you
about anther TOYOTA DEALER balls up! - they are so common in Boston, I should be
able to run my own newsletter column.
When I first saw my MR2, it did not have a battery on it. I asked why, and my
FORD MAIN DEALER from where I was buying it, said, “we are waiting and have been
waiting for several days now for a replacement from TOYOTA.” At that point I had
never dealt with TOYOTA, and did not know that they are so inept. After a
further 5 days, the battery arrived and the man from Ford fitted it and rang me
for a test drive. All was fine and the deal was done.
The car was used every day for the first three months, so no problems had the
chance to appear. Then the car was parked up for a fortnight, due to my wife
being ill, and, yes, it was dead flat. Thinking as any normal person would I
thought that I’d left something on but what?
>Even after the car was stood for three days, it struggled to start, so it
must be a fault on the car? No, I checked the charge rate - fine, and for any
discharge - fine. I asked my TOYOTA dealer for a new battery under warranty, and
the very nice man said “yes.” Very surprised, I fitted my new battery and
everything was fine for the first four months. The car was only being used on
odd days and a lack of enthusiasm to start was beginning to show.
I rang my dealer, and he said it could only be a fault on the car, as their
batteries are brill. He sent me to an auto electrical specialist, who checked
the car and found no faults. He lent me a battery, so that he could do a
thorough check on my own. I returned a week later, and he gave me my old battery
back, and told me that the problem was that it had NEVER been charged up from
new!! This is why it would not hold it’s charge.
He then told me of the charge of £24.67 for their time and service. I told
him to pass it on to my TOYOTA dealer, which he did, and they took full
responsibility, and told me that they never charge their batteries and that must
have been the problem with my first one. Of course, they will not have a problem
with people who run their cars every day!
My MR2 has just spent the last five weeks in the garage without being
started. I’ve just been out to it, and now it’s fine thanks to my local battery
specialist.
Mark Dawson
Electric Aerial By Mark Dawson
As promised, an article on electric aerials. My MR2 had a broken aerial mast
when I bought it, and a trip to my main dealer soon told me why. “Yes sir, they
are £166.00”, I was told by the scruffy trainer clad parts person, “But you can
buy just the mast for a mere £32.27”. I ordered one thinking I had saved £133.73
- what a bargain! The service manager was in the stores and he even showed me
how to fit it. Surely I must be in the wrong dealership - they are not normally
this helpful. How right I was.
A week went by and my new mast arrived, the smile on my face was soon to be
cruelly wiped off. I dismantled my aerial unit only to find that the plastic
cord that pushes the aerial up and down was missing. I returned to my Toyota
dealer to order a new one. This was a fairly painless operation. Another week
went by and my new cord turned up. I paid my £9.52 and made my way home via the
cream cake shop, still thinking of my £124.21 saving. How I laughed.
The cord was attached to the new mast in the way in which I had been told.
The unit was rebuilt, reinstalled into the car and the radio turned on. I held
my breath as the mast went up. The radio was turned off and sure enough, the
mast went down. I refitted all the trim in the boot, including those annoying
little plastic clips.
The aerial continued to work, faultlessly, for two weeks, during which time,
to test my prowess as a mast repair man the thing was up and down like a whores
drawers. Then, typically, disaster struck. The aerial came to a halt in the mid
way position. An urgent investigation soon revealed that a small white plastic
cog that was taking all the strain, bless it, had shattered. Back to the dealer,
who, with his trainers in the blocks, tried to make a run for it, but up I swept
to the counter, I asked for the plastic cog, and he told me that this is the
only part of the electric aerial assembly that you cannot buy. I felt as though
he had taken off his trainers and hung them on my ears. I felt gutted, sickened,
appalled and angry. He then went on to ask me, “Did you cut the cord to the
length of the aerial?” I, of course, knew that he omitted to impart this
information when I bought the cord and shook my head meekly. The plastic cog
had, in fact, given up under the strain of having to wrap up so much cord. This
was like a nightmare game of horrid real - life snakes and ladders where I was
nearly at 100 and for the sake of sanity at 98, had dropped myself straight in
the snakes gaping jaws, and down I went - what number was I going to land on? I
had hoped for above fifty.
Silly attempts here to repair the cog with superglue are not worth
mentioning, and on reflection was the act of a desperate man, and really is the
sort of thing that Skoda or Reliant Robin owners would do.
To start with, I once had a serviceable unit. Now, after tumbling down that
snakes back, I had a unit that was unrepairable. I rang around breakers yards
and eventually found a unit which had a mast missing but was otherwise intact,
so I sent off the cheque to the breakers, for £45, and laid in wait for the
postman.
My saving was now down to £79.21. When the unit arrived, it was very rusty,
but my plastic cog was intact. The cog was transferred to my original unit, but
unfortunately, the plastic cord can only be cut to size at one end, due to a
fitting, which meant that another cord had to be ordered from the athlete at
Toyota. I was surprised that within three weeks there had been a price rise
relating to this part, from £9.52, the cord had jumped to a staggering £10.18.
The running saving total was down to £69.03.
I was now skillful and adept at taking the aerial to bits, and had the unit
whipped apart and repaired in no time at all. This aerial is now working well,
and continues to do so after 18 months. Was it worth all the aggro? I have to
take into account all the telephone calls, trips to the dealer, waiting time,
upset, despair, anger and pure frustration. The saving of £60.00 maximum
balances the equation slightly, but I suppose that if I knew then what I know
now I’d have got my £166.00 out, took the 12 month warranty, but probably would
not have learned the lessons in life of toleration.
MARK DAWSON
THE CAR IN FRONT HAS EXPLODED
In an episode of “The Murder Detectives” a U.S. programme made in 1998, and
broadcast on Channel 5 11-30 to 12-00 on Tuesday 8th February 2000, a blue MR2
MKl features in rather horrific circumstances.
Rescue services have been called to a car explosion in Salt Lake City, Utah,
the driver has been badly injured by a pipe bomb and a local television station
captures what has happened. Although the car is severely damaged it is clearly
an MR2, and forensic scientists are shown examining it at some length.
Detectives eventually discover that the car owner, Mark Hofmann, is a forger
of valuable historic American documents, and has accidentally blown himself up
with a home-made pipe bomb (using bits bought from a Tandy shop) Hofmann has
already killed two people by the same method, one of whom he suspected was on
the trail of his criminal activities. Forensic reconstruction of the explosion
in the killers MR2 used computer generated virtual reality to look around the
car in the hunt for evidence.
Should Mr. Hofmann, upon his eventual release from prison, apply to join the
club his application will be turned down.
RICHARD MORGAN
Travel News - By Peter R. F. Walton
In response to your request in Newsletter No. 2 for anecdotes of MR2 drivers,
I thought you might like to know what happened on my honeymoon (no, not that
I bought my MR2 in May 1985, and married in 1986 (perhaps sports cars do
attract the fairer sex). We honeymooned travelling around the south coast of
Ireland, stopping in farmhouse B and B’s., but the roads leave something to be
desired for a small car, with grass up the middle of all roads except motorways!
First we were forced off the road by two boys, no more than five years old,
riding a donkey up the middle, then we became tangled up in a funeral cortege,
attracting more attention than the deceased from the less distressed mourners.
To calm our nerves we parked the car in the back street of Bantry, and went
for a walk. We returned to find a young lad standing at the front of the MR2,
shouting at it and waiting for it to talk back. He said that he had seen it on
TV, it was called “Kit” and was the star of a programme called “Knight Rider”
The MR2 has been great fun from the day I bought it, and I am now having it
rust proofed by a mobile corrosion specialist who says he has not done an MR2
before – I will keep you posted on the costs and the results.
MILLENNIUM EVE AT THE LOCAL
The fancy dress disco is in full swing, the D.J. shouts “Its time for Big
Ben!” and tunes into the radio. As the last “bong” booms out over the revellers
it all starts to happen…..The lights go out, the generator cuts in to drunken
cheers, but the chandeliers glow brighter and brighter and then melt. Bar pumps
spurt fountains of free beer. As the crowd rushes to the bar 2 lagers being rung
up on the till shows 100 Euros, the Landlady insists that the till is never
wrong. Outside a loud series of crashes is heard, as the traffic lights succumb
to millennium mayhem and all go to green, all the car alarms go off in unison.
Overhead the British Midland flight from Gatwick to East Midlands Airport lands
in the bottom car park. Patron’s mobile phones light up and explode....The smell
of burning mock leather fills the air.
The microwave oven in the kitchen blows its door off as the landlords’ supper
turns to radioactive dust. The payphone in the empty back bar dials the Pentagon
and informs the U.S. military that a nuclear missile has just taken off from the
beer garden. The fruit machine flashes “MILLENNIUM JACKPOT” and spits out its
entire contents as the cigarette machine smokes itself to death.
Meanwhile back in the disco, Auld Lang Syne plays at 78rpm as dancers shake
themselves and their neighbours into a frenzy, the pub heating system goes into
reverse and snow falls from the ceiling. The condom machine in the Gents
dispenses its stock for free, unfortunately the poor sods filling their pockets
with chocodoms and glow-in-the-dark specials don’t notice the tiny holes in each
packet made by the faulty dispensing mechanism.
The owner of an early “B” reg MR2, his pockets stuffed with coins from the
generous fruit machine - and seriously flawed condoms - manages to escape from
the pub, his mobile phone still smouldering on his belt. He shivers as the free
beer he is soaked in starts to freeze in the cold night air. As he looks around
trying to remember where he has parked the MR2, the many small fires that have
broken out in the pub illuminate the car park with an eerie glow. He scratches
his head in thought and winces in pain as he realises that drips from the
melting chandeliers have burnt his hair to ash, which has mixed with escaped
beer steaming on his head.
Above the wails from inside the pub he hears an engine start, a randy Range
Rover has turned itself on and mounts an MR2 MK2 parked directly in front of it,
which gasps and collapses under the strain... In the gloom not far away the “B”
reg MKI starts to grow new wheel arches in a millennium time warp, the
mileometer whizzes backwards and stops at 5000 miles. In a file under the
passenger seat thousands of pounds worth of past Toyota main dealer bills go
blank, oily stains on the pages of a Haynes manual evaporate and loose pages
reattach themselves. The electric aerial suddenly begins its first ascent for
the first time in months, and the brown primeval soup in the coolant expansion
bottle turns a glorious red colour, like a fine wine. Roof seals on the T-bar
slowly swell, and the water drips cease, cracks and creases in leather seats
rejuvenate themselves as the expiry date on the tax disc changes to 12-01 and
the M.O.T. certificate in the glove box does the same. Faded red paint
revitalises itself, stone chips heal and insects come back from the dead and fly
away from the front bumper. The fuel gauge creeps to full, cigarette burns in
the carpet regenerate as chewing gum stains disappear, the central locking
system clicks rhythmically as electric windows glide smoothly up and down. The
car seems to rise slightly as worn springs and shock absorbers regain their
youth and balding tyres re-grow their treads, previously boz-eyed headlights
smoothly rise and fall in perfect harmony.
RICHARD MORGAN
An Amusing phone call to Toyota's parts department - by Alan
Names have been changed to protect the guilty
Jesus Christ are all Toyota parts guys brain-dead? Been phoning around this
morning to try and locate an expansion tank cap for my MK1 NA (not with much
luck I'd add) and thought I'd try out my semi-local dealer. Conversation went
something like this;
Me: Morning, I'm looking for an expansion tank cap for an '87 MK1 MR2?
Parts Muppet: What car is it sir?
Me: A Mark 1 MR2
PM: Do you have a chassis number?
Me: No, not to hand
PM: What car is it?
Me: A 1986 Mark 1 Toyota MR2 (just impressing on him that its a Toyota)
PM: You don't have a chassis number then?
Me: No, it was registered November '86 if that helps?
PM: What part are you looking for?
Me: An expansion tank cap
PM: For the radiator? (since when did MR2's have caps on the radiator?)
Me: No, for the expansion tank?
PM: Where is that located?
Me: Right rear of vehicle, next to the engine? (Now beginning to wonder
whether he knows the MR2 has the engine in the back)
PM: Without a chassis number I can't guarantee I'll get you the right part -
it might be a washer bottle cap or a brake fluid cap...
Me: (getting annoyed) No, its for the expansion tank
PM: What system is that?
Me: (getting really perplexed) Um, the cooling system, for the engine?
PM: Is it for the air-conditioning?
Me: No, an '86 MR2 doesn't have air-con. Its for the engine cooling system.
PM: What year is it - I need to know to get the right one
Me: Its a pre-revisions '86 Mk1 MR2 with the bluecap engine
PM: It's not a MK2 then?
Me: No, its a pre-revision car - Toyota made changes to the engine in '87 and
various other upgrades before then.
PM: I'll have a look sir.
Me: OK
(cue silence for 5 minutes)
PM: Can't get it sir, can only get the entire tank (Not true, as I'd spoken
to other dealers who confirmed the part was 15 quid)
Me: Yes you can - its a plastic cap with two rubber hoses attached
PM: What's the chassis number, without it I can't be totally sure...
Me: I've told you, I don't know. Do you have any expansion tank caps in
stock? If you're not sure which one I'll come down the car and fit it in the car
park...
PM: No
Me: Goodbye.
Wish I'd got his name. Just hope he was on work experience or something. My 2
is now going nowhere near this unidentified Toyota Dealer...
VIVA ESPANA!
I have lost fifth gear. I do not know which planet it is now on, but one
thing is certain, it is not in my Volvo. So it was with great relish that I
waved Goodbye to Dad (a golfing weekend in Spain), a smile on my face and MR2
keys my hand!
He went at midday and about one minute later I had my tapes, sunglasses and
other essentials all set up in the car. I took care in setting the seat and the
mirrors, taking it for a little spin, just to check they were right, you
understand. A couple of hours later I got home and settled down to getting some
sleep in preparation for working the night shift.
After rousing myself and eating something I sat waiting for 9pm to arrive.
When it did I remained seated for another five minutes, and then locked up the
house and got into the car. By then I was running sufficiently late to have to
go to work a tad quicker than usual. A nice warm up through town to the dual
carriageway that would take me to Leicester. I opened her up then, not wanting
to be in trouble with my sergeant for my tardiness. I remembered to slow down at
the roundabouts (which is good for me on nights) and enjoyed the dry roads and
loud-ish music! As I reached Leicester I put on the mandatory cruising
sunglasses and meandered through the city to the police station where I work. As
I reached the gates thy were just closing so I drove the car straight up to them
so they would reopen, which they did. I sped through them and almost took out
the drugs dog that was having a leg stretch in the yard with its handler. As
preferred by Dad I parked the car in the underground garage and sauntered into
work ten minutes early.
At 7am I returned to the car feeling perfectly wide awake, as we all do when
it is going home time, and left the station. A short while later I Pulled up at
a set of traffic lights on the inside lane with one car in front of me with its
left indicator on. As the lights were on red I glanced to my right and saw my
sergeant grinning at me from the middle lane, his 2.4l estate car level with
mine. I noticed that the car in front of his was moving over to the right lane
so I smiled to myself. When the lights turned green let rip. I think I was doing
fifty coming out of the last bend of the roundabout, and the car was just a blip
in my rear view mirror.
I went to Tesco's on the way home and managed to fit the shopping in the
boot, squashed bread and all! Then I went home and slept, dreaming of speeding
cars and angry sergeants.
At work that night I found that he was annoyed, only because, unbeknown to
me, the majority of the rest of the shift were behind us at the roundabout, and
getting one up on the sergeant is always considered an heroic act. He griped
about it for a while but after reassuring him that it would not occur the
following morning due to the amount of rainfall he calmed down.
I spent an horrendous Friday night shift doing what we always do on Friday
nights, fighting with drunken yobs and drug crazed Idiots and was so exhausted
that I drove at under 60mph all of the way home. Sometimes it affects me like
that, not just mental tiredness but also physical exhaustion, as it is is not
easy or fun wrestling with a man that outweighs you by 5 stone. I managed to
park the car on the drive, not straight by any means, before I passed out for a
couple of hours sleep.
I got up mid morning rather drowsy and hit the coffee with a vengeance. It
was my first day off after getting paid and I was determined not to sleep
through it. After a wake up call of five gallons of caffeine I drove into town,
sunglasses at the ready, just in case the sun put in an appearance. It took
simply ages to find a parking space and I just had to drive through town several
times (such a hardship) and I did not stall it this time! After spending some
hard-earned cash I went into the country and went along road up to the stables
where I keep my horse. There are various routes and my favourite – the and least
known - is a road that climbs and turns following the side of a quarry. It just
goes round and round and in the dry it is so much fun. I got to the stables
remembering to slow down as I pulled in to the yard, as the cobbles are rather
viscious (Dad would be proud). Then after feeding Her Ladyship (as she is known
in our house) I returned home, filling the car up with super unleaded on the
way.
I then settled down to enjoy my purchases (books) for the evening. A few
minutes later my sister rang to see if I wanted to join her family in a bite to
eat. I then spent ten minutes looking for the bottle of wine that I purchased
the morning before with the rest of the shopping. I found it in the bathroom
cabinet (I must have been more tired than I thought) and set off to my sisters
house. Sadly she only lives about a mile away and I did not even have enough
time or distance to get it into fourth before parking outside her house.
Fortunately we were eating a takeaway so guess who volunteered to go and get it
in the car. Sue came with me, telling me how they had found a new curry place
and how good the food was. It was about a tenth of a mile from her house and I
remained in second gear the whole way!
I spent a great night there and finished up sleeping on the top bunk of their
four year old son’s bed. My baby niece crying to be fed - or James my nephew -
asking me if we could get up and play with his train set several times in the
night. But it was fun, honest!
The following morning my plans for a long drive in the afternoon were
scuppered by my horse having taken ill in the night. This caused me to return to
see her in the afternoon. Instead of going past the quarry I drove along the
road through the woods, my normal route, which I know better I spots on my nose.
The nice thing about the MR2 is that it will take a hilly jogger-ridden road and
just eat it up for tea with room for dessert (does that sound like Jeremy
Clarkson or what?) Anyway I made it to the record time, morning and afternoon,
to care for Her Ladyship. However one good thing did occur. It rained, freeing
me from any responsibilities in cleaning the MR2 car prior to Dads return. He
came back late that afternoon and l duly informed him of the position of the
seat and the mirrors and, more importantly, thanked him for not getting a wheel
clamp or other such device that I did not have a key for.
LIZ KYNOCH
CLUB EVENTS - THE TRUTH
After reading the article promoting the clubs events for the year, and having
been the victim of one of last years cockups, I felt forced to put pen to paper
and put the record straight.
I will have to remain anonymous to protect myself. You must believe me when I
tell you - under no circumstances should members be conned into going to what
our committee calls "an event".
Like most of you I had resisted the temptation to go to one, they sound just
to good to be true, but I made a mistake, a big mistake. All I telephoned about
was an innocent enquiry about why the subscriptions never seem to go up in
price. Initially I didnt realise that the conversation was being carefully and
subtly moved onto the subject of events. Having never been before, in spite of
being a member for many years I thought that my resistance to persuasion was
pretty good. I spurned the offer of free tickets easily, claiming that I had
promised my wife to take her to the garden centre that day, I had used this
excuse many times before and it had always been accepted. On this occasion I was
informed that the event was actually being held in the grounds of a large garden
centre, nationally known for its wide range of shrubs and plants at remarkably
low prices. My second line of defence, of being aware of the weather forecast
for the day concerned, was brushed aside with the consumate ease of a club
official who had heard this one many times before. A hot sunny day was
guaranteed he said. The usually safe bet - "my wheelarches are rusty and I will
feel ashamed" was quickly countered with an offer of free new arches fitted at
the clubs expense during a suitable time at the show - and with no witnesses. "I
don’t know how to get there" was interrupted by a smooth rehearsed reply - a
member of the committee lived nearby and he would call round on the morning and
I could follow him. He would even take me to a petrol station where MK1's were
given free petrol. (actually paid for by the next customer driving a MK2)
The list of attractions at the show seemed just amazing, and with my phone
bill increasing I agreed just to get off the phone. My free tickets would arrive
by special courier the day before the show. I must admit that as I went to bed
the night before I was starting to look forward to it - how could I have been
such a fool! I was dragged out of bed at 3am, no time for breakfast, jeans and a
jumper hastily thrown over my pyjamas. I hurried as much as I could being half
asleep, but the committee man kept shouting "Schnell, schnell, ve must go!" My
free petrol? You are still dreaming he said.
Screaming down what seemed like hundreds of miles of unfamiliar motorways,
trying vainly to keep up with my guide, it was still dark due mainly to the
pouring rain. When we arrived he drove straight through and gestured for me to
stop. A burly security man thrust a bundle of passes into my hand and told me
that I had to stand at the gates and give them out to our club members as they
arrived.
It was nearly three hours before they had all turned up, several people were
very rude when I was unable to answer their questions about the days events. My
slippers were sodden as I climbed back into my MR2 and drove around looking for
the club pitch. When I found them they insisted that I put up the club gazebo on
my own, and shouted at me when I trapped my fingers and slipped in the mud. They
pinched all the chairs for themselves and wouldn’t give me a drink from the club
cooler box. The man at the burger bar said that he had sold out and told me to
sod off.
I was tired, cold, wet and hungry as I trudged back to the club pitch. But
the worst was yet to come, they were all drunk, and two members were fighting
over my new alloy wheels and Bridgestone tyres, and they assaulted me when I
tried to stop them. Some of the others forced me to polish their MR2's. As they
all gradually fell asleep I tried to leave, pushing my MR2 so as not to alert
them. I was sent back at the gate by the security man who slapped me and said
that nobody leaves until 4.30.
When I got back they hit me again for trying to escape and made me buy more
beer for them.
Eventually the Tannoy announced that the show was closing and we could all
leave, I could not get the gazebo back into its bag as it was still wet through,
and trapped my fingers again taking it down. To placate my wife when I got home,
I went to the garden centre to buy her a present, but felt faint due to the lack
of food and drink and fell into an ornamental thorn bush. I had hell of a time
explaining that I had ripped my pyjamas on the thorns and was not a flasher, but
the manager threatened to call the police. I had had enough and decided to leave
as quickly as possible but got my beloved MR2 driven into twice by other cars
trying to beat the rush getting out. I finally lost my temper and tried to drive
over the security man but missed, and the bastard smashed my windscreen with his
baton.
The MR2 felt funny on the long road home so I pulled into a lay - by and
discovered 4 corroded teardrops where my shiny alloys should have been. The
police accepted my denial of being the garden centre flasher but insisted on
prosecuting me for having four bald tyres.
RICHARD MORGAN
Head Gasket quote from Toyota Garage
Relevance: MK1
From: Witheld
Date: 6th September 2001
Comments
I've had a quote from my Toyota garage for my MR2 Mark 1, at being £800, but
they have told me that if the cylinder or whatever is cracked and they need to
grind it etc, it could cost me as much as £2700. I only paid £3000 for the car
last year. Is this reasonable or am I being ripped off. And why if it’s so
expensive why don’t they just suggest to me about getting a reconditioned engine
etc?
MR2 buyers in Denmark bought 496 MK1’s between 1985 and 1989. From 1990 until
the launch of the MK3, a total 18 MK2’s were sold.
Woeful tale of MR2 ownership - by Robert
About two months ago I found myself in the right circumstances to get my ten
year old dream (no girlfriend, no children and with steady employment) so I
decided to start my search. One of the major incentives although I wish I had
owned an AW11 from new was the collapse of the pre-owned car market which
resulted in AW11s from as little as £395.00 up to £5000.
RULE ONE - ALWAYS GET A HPI CHECK!!!
I proceeded to search the local press including Loot, Quids In, Fish4Cars and
Autotrader online, finding many examples in various degrees of degradation and
some plain silly prices. My colleague at work helped with advice on what to look
for on buying a used car in general as it was to be my first car and I
researched the MR2 web sites downloading various buyers guides regarding the
AW11 and SW20. Having found one particular example which was advertised in the
Loot and was based in Knowsley (Liverpool) I phoned for details. The car in
question was advertised as metallic green, a private plate, Kenwood stereo,
immobiliser, 2 months MOT and priced at £800 ono. The car had no tax and had sat
for two months so I was advised I needed a battery and some jump leads (the car
also had 132,000 miles on the clock). I was all set to travel to Knowsley that
evening (Wednesday) as the owner was emigrating in the next few days. My
colleague ran an E-Check on the car via the HPI web site before I travelled and
found the car to be an insurance total loss - the E-Check is well worth £12.50
of anybody's money. The owner was shocked as he had paid £3000 for it two years
earlier!!
We began looking at others and to my surprise I found another example in
Quids in, which was for sale by a trader in Connahs Quay (near Deeside) and the
details sounded a little off putting. F reg 1989 MR2, Mica blue, excellent
condition, interior immaculate, 17" Venoms, full electric pack and some service
history. We arranged to view the car and went to look at it on Friday after
work, taking all the information I had collected off the Internet regarding the
pitfalls of buying a used MR2. When we arrived I was quite taken aback by the
rust on the body work (I know these things rot but when someone says immaculate
condition, that is what you expect) but those things can be fixed so we
continued to look at the rest of the condition of the vehicle.
The mileage read 127,000 on the clock and there were a few things that would
need attention to make it perfect. The clutch was slipping, the exhaust back box
was blown and replacement tires were needed - a cost of around £600. We agreed
upon a price for the car - £1300 and the trader agreed to throw in a B reg AW11
to use for parts as it needed too much work to pass an MOT. I knew there would
be a lot of parts I couldn't use off the B reg but I would have been able to
sell the car for parts and recoup some of the money I would have to spend on the
F reg.
Well everything was set to go and we ran a full HPI check upon the F reg and
discovered there happened to be outstanding finance to the sum of over £5000.
Having spent around £120 so far on HPI and E-Checks for various AW11s I was
starting to get a little annoyed (I had been looking at other examples) and
looked further a field.
My Colleague found an F reg example in a Quicks Group auction in Manchester.
He volunteered to travel to Manchester on my behalf and bid for the car if it
was in reasonable condition. I had advised him to bid no more than £1400 but the
car actually sold for £1850 which in his opinion was well worth it - a price at
the time I could not afford.
A trader in Stafford (about 2hrs travel from Wrexham) had an red F reg
example which was very clean in his words, with 130,000 miles on the clock, full
electric pack, and full service history, priced at £1595. I took a day off work
and drove down to Stafford to look at the car - what a waste of time!!! The car
in question had been on the forecourt for several months and was bleached badly
but that was insignificant compared to the other problems. The front bonnet
catch was rusted to beyond repair - I am surprised the bonnet didn't pop open.
The arches were in poor condition, the badge was missing, the valences had gone
beyond repair and the service history oh yes - the owners handbooks were there,
the service book had been stamped up to 96,000 miles and some receipts scrunched
up. The trader's biggest selling point happened to be "Where are you going to
find a car like this with all this history and at a price like this?"
The gentleman could not understand why I wasn't interested - he lowered the
price to £1450 including 12 months MOT so I asked if I could have a Toyota
dealer look over it before I made a decision (there was a Toyota dealer only
five minutes walk from the forecourt), he seemed to think they would not just
drop everything to look at this car - how wrong could he be.
The Dealership in question bent over backwards to help out (at a cost of
£25.00 + VAT) and included the car for a pre-mot check that afternoon. The car
failed on 5 separate incidents all involving the chassis and body related
faults. The engine and gearbox had been looked after (it drove superb) but the
body and chassis had been neglected so much that it had more holes than Swiss
cheese - a crime.
After looking through several more examples in the Autotrader - some with
less than excellent descriptions - certain AW11s people were asking stupid
prices (yes I understand the AW11 is a classic and don't get me wrong I love my
car but there is a border between common sense and stupidity). Overall I had
looked at about fifteen or so AW11s and I was wondering whether I would actually
find the right one or not.
It's funny how everything comes together at the right moment and while
looking over the adverts in Fish4cars, I found one that sounded promising in
Southport which was described as a "C reg 1986, red, very panel straight, the
best at £1495." I phoned the gentleman and asked about the mileage 101,000,
plenty of service history, immaculate inside and out and he would include an MOT
in the price. I drove out to Southport on a Saturday - not a wise day to visit a
popular costal area. Its one of those feelings you get inside of your stomach
when you know you are looking at the right car and I knew as soon as I saw the
condition of the car that it was the right one. The trader had tried to MOT it
the day before but it failed twice down to minor faults (bulbs were not working
and the brakes needed adjustment) so it meant that I would not be able to take
it away that day. I looked carefully over the bodywork and engine before taking
it for a drive - wow it was smooth and everything worked perfectly - it was
immaculate even down to the original radio and sub woofer.
The Toyota service record had not been up to date but the rest of the
receipts and past MOT certificates corroborated the mileage - it was due for a
service though. I paid £100 deposit and didn't even argue the price.
My colleague and I arrived on Wednesday and proceeded to collect the car on
his car trailer - not an easy task as the front valence was rather low and
prevented the car from being driven onto the trailer - it was reversed upon the
trailer instead. It was the longest 2 hours of my life, looking back to see if
the car was still on the trailer.
The nightmare was finally over...or was it.
RULE TWO - ALWAYS READ THE SMALL PRINT!!
I started to enquire about insurance as I had been driving on my parents
insurance since I got my license (over 10 years) so I was expecting a high
premium price. Having received fully comprehensive quotes from £1200 per year to
£749, I called one insurance company and they quoted £625 per year -
surprisingly cheap so I paid a deposit of £170.19 with my credit card and waited
for the cover note and details for the direct debit method of payment.
The paperwork arrived at the weekend as it had been sitting in the post
office for two days as the postage was underpaid - not a good sign. When
examining the paperwork I found a credit agreement to pay the balance of the
premium, £120 in set up costs for the direct debit, various administration costs
which made the policy more expensive than some of the other quotes. Under no
circumstances was any of the extra charges explained to me on the phone or that
I would be expected to sign a credit agreement form to take out a direct debit
method of payment. The credit card company called it a clear case of
misrepresentation. I wonder what would have happened should I have needed to
make a claim? Oh yes, I forgot to mention that none of the figures were
calculated correctly on the form, no interest was calculated and most
importantly there was a lack of figures pertaining to how many payments I was to
make.
I was told that the contract had been made over the phone as soon as I had
presented my credit card details and that after consulting with trading
standards, the citizen's advice bureau and a solicitor things are slowly making
progress but be careful out there as you are liable for whatever amount is put
onto your visa credit card and the company can do nothing to prevent money being
taken off your credit card!! The credit card company claimed they were a third
party and could not help. The solicitor termed the insurance company shysters as
they expected me to pay another £226.00 in cancellation fees.
RULE THREE - BE CAREFUL WHERE YOU SERVICE IT!!!
I have recently taken my MR2 (reg C910 OHG) to my local dealer (see my
locality) for a full service which included a "C" service, Cam belt replacement
(a wise move for any used car), Alternator belt replacement, Coolant drain,
flush, replace and some replacement screws for holding the dashboard together
(they had been removed to install an immobiliser but not replaced). As with any
service there is always something that you need and unfortunately I had an extra
expenditure waiting for me.
The rear wheel bearing had worn, the exhaust backbox had blown, one of the
cam belt casing bolts had been put on with an airgun resulting in the bolt
needed heating. This destroyed the cam belt casing, the cam belt pulley (it
reads like a grocery list) and a lot of hours labour. They put plenty of doubts
in my mind about certain components on my car - its not a new car but sell me a
new chassis, panels, gear box, clutch, engine, steering column - what is going
on? I am sure the car isn't that bad:-)
The Toyota Dealers were very coy about the figures and would not give me any
pricing whatsoever. They claimed that they did it to protect the customer
because a lot of people don't like hearing expensive figures!! What do you do
when you are given a bill for £1194.70? I lost my tea that night and the comment
from the sales receptionist kept going through my mind "we work very closely
with trading standards."
They have your car so what can you do? Just pay the bill and go to an
independent to repair the car in future, I finally get the car of my dreams and
it turned into a nightmare!!!
ROBERT
Super Quick Knob
FEMALE- later model preferred but will consider earlier models.
Body must
be in excellent shape, no rear end problems. Bumpers must be perky
and
silicone free and unmodified. Colour not important, but must be lively
and
have a tight gearbox, no jumping out of gear allowed!
Hoping to
find a model that has had few previous owners and not many miles
on the
clock. Must be willing to be driven hard and regularly serviced.
So if
you think you can satisfy my requirements please get in touch with
your most
recent photo.
Hope you like.
Mike.
車種別専用設計と汎用タイプを取り揃えております。
